


Color Me Intrigued

by orphan_account



Series: Adventures of Alien Bean Branch [2]
Category: Trolls (2016)
Genre: "What the fuck is a hug", Alien AU, Branch is worried about his strange human friend, F/M, Poppy is confused, everyones confused, help them, these are so short I'm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-12-04 16:40:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11559225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Branch learns about hugging and the magic of hair dye.





	Color Me Intrigued

**Author's Note:**

> People liked the last one lets try this one. I'm sorry it's so short!!
> 
> I'm so sorry about the pun title but I HAD TO!!

  
Branch didn't really understand hugs.

The first time Poppy had hugged him, he was worried he'd done something wrong. Why else would she try to strangle his body like a Reksna? However, he doubted Poppy was trying to kill him. She wasn't that type of person. Was it their way of performing language transfers? No, Poppy had never expressed any want of learning Trol'kan, and she'd never spoken any of it after. Maybe it was a way of transferring warmth? Unlikely. The sun was at it's highest and the temperature was above average for their planet.

After some research with the help of The Google, Branch found out that hugs were a human way of showing affection, and he was eager to display his new knowledge, even if he didn't quite understand it. Poppy didn't seem to mind, and neither did he, even if she tended to squeeze a bit too hard, and had tried to spin him around multiple times. It made him feel colorful.

He hugged the others, too, but not as much. Branch was fond of them, yes, but not as much as he was of Poppy. But they didn't mind, either, and had decided to start a trend that, whenever Branch hugged someone, they all yelled 'hug time!' and ran into a nine-way hug - ten if Creek was around, but he tended to stay away from Branch (not that he was complaining).

On the rare occasion that Creek did visit when Branch was around, he'd always scoff whenever Branch hugged his friends. He'd call him a 'lapdog' even though he knew Branch was Trol'kan, and he'd make inside human jokes that Branch didn't understand. Just when he was feeling more at home on Earth, Creek had to remind him of what an outsider be really was.

Branch decided not to hug people as much after that.

/\/\/\

Poppy's color was fading.

He'd noticed when he'd gone to get some chocolate (his favourite human treat so far), and seen Poppy brushing her hair as she watched something on her magic moving-picture box. Branch frowned, squinting at her hair as it slid out of the brush like Mikatan silk. He could've sworn it was brighter before.

He'd tried to convince himself it was nothing. Humans were strange, maybe it was just some odd phase. Their moon had been fuller that night, perhaps it was to do with that. But Branch was a worrier, and no amount of chocolate could calm his paranoia.

/\/\/\

It was getting worse.

Poppy's bright magenta hair had faded into a lighter pastel color, and Branch was certain that it was only a matter of time before she turned entirely gray. He tried to ask her if anything was wrong, but she'd simply waved him off and told him everything was fine. Couldn't she see he was trying to help her? Why didn't she trust him enough to tell him what was wrong?

Desperate times called for desperate measures.

Branch had been practicing all morning, and now it was his chance. Poppy was cooking pancakes in the kitchen. He had to act quickly, her whole life was at stake, here!  
He ran forwards and flung himself onto Poppy's back, making a squealing noise in the back of his throat - that's what Poppy did when she hugged people, right? Poppy gasped in surprise, spilling some liquid-pancake onto the floor (Branch really didn't get human food). He heard her giggle softly, and almost collapsed in relief. She was happy! Surely she'd be fixed now, right?

But when he let go, even though she was smiling, her hair was still pale and faded.

He must've looked positively helpless, because Poppy's smile vanished almost immediately.

"Something wrong, bud?"

Branch swallowed thickly.

"... Didn't work."

"What didn't work?" Poppy frowned, reaching out to the poor alien.

"Your color. It has not come back." Branch mumbled. "Is - is it my fault?"

"Branch, sweetie, what're you talkin' about?" Poppy said, smiling gently. "You didn't do anything."

Branch knew if he said anything else, he was going to start crying. All he could do was poke at her hair.

"What?" Poppy tilted her head like Mr Dinkles did when he was confused. "Did I get pancake batter in it or -?"

He cut her off by pulling her into another hug, burying his face into her neck. He tried to say something, but he could only mumble quietly. Any louder and he was certain he would cry like an infant.

"What was that?" Poppy questioned, holding him to her. "I heard gray, did you say gray?"

He nodded slowly.

"Oh, Branch, sweetie!" She giggled, petting his hair gently. "I'm not going gray, humans don't do that! Well, sort of. But not with colors!"

This human culture would be the death of him.

"Here, c'mon, c'mon." She said, tugging him to the bathroom. "I actually picked up some dye today, I'll show you."

It turned out that humans didn't change color at all - unless they were sick, or hot, or cold. They just changed their colors manually. Poppy showed him how 'dye' worked, rubbing it into her hair and rinsing it out. By the time she was finished, her hair was back to it's former bright pink glory.

At least it explained those interesting stains in the shower.

/\/\/\

Branch had missed hugging Poppy.

After the whole color problem was over, Poppy had pulled Branch into the living room to watch her magic picture discs. She'd grabbed a blanket and some human food (like chocolate, _yay_ ) and they'd curled up together on the couch, her scratching his ears _just_ right, him playing with her new hair.

He didn't know what he was so embarrassed about. Creek could put his opinions in his anus, as Guy would say (how that would even work, Branch preferred not to think about). Branch didn't trust the thoughts of a person with hair like that, anyways.

She hadn't put on any of her awful 'science' films - they were so full of errors and false information that Branch thought he would explode - and instead let him pick the movie. He'd of course gone straight for Mulan, a personal favourite of his. Who knew human armies did vocal training as well!

Poppy poked his cheek as they watched, giggling when he bristled.

"You feeling better now, Stitch?"

"Your nicknames continue to annoy and confuse me."

"Ooh, sick burn."

"I don't know what that means. Now be quiet, Shang's about to sing."

A soft blue illuminated his skin as they sang along.

**Author's Note:**

> In case you didn't get the Mulan thing, I should probably mention that, on Branch's planet, their armies use their voices to fight people (like sonic screams and stuff) so they sing to warm them up.


End file.
